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Photo#73302
Misumenops? - Mecaphesa

Misumenops? - Mecaphesa
Herndon, Fairfax County, Virginia, USA
August 27, 2006
Found it lurking on a petal of a cluster of flowers very similar to hydrangea in my back yard. What gender is it? Still trying to learn how to tell fat palps from thin...

Moved
Moved from Crab Spiders.

Moved
Moved from Spiders.

Misumenops Celer ID
Definitely misumenops celer, Even though many depend on the hairyness, which is definitely a factor, the celer always has the same markings, even though the contrast and colors vary. The Texas Agricultural Extension Service gave this:

"Celer crab spider (Misumenops celer [Hentz]) The celer crab spider is also a hunting spider, does not weave a web and usually is found in plant terminals. The four front legs are longer than the four rear legs, and there usually are two longitudinal stripes behind the eyes on the carapace. Also, the rear half of the abdomen often has a "V" shaped mark pointing toward the rear. Adults reach a length of about 1/4 inch. They are yellow, green or white with reddish markings. Immature stages resemble adults but are smaller."

 
Excellent, thank you!
Now I know what all these crab spiders in my yard and neighbors' yards are. I've run across several color variations, but always the same markings.

Misumenops
I agree. As far as gender, I am leaning toward female. Even though the one palp does seem slightly enlarged in this shot, I have found male crab spiders to look very different from the females....and this one looks like the females. Here is a shot of a male in this genus. However, this is all just my best guess.

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